About Me

Hello, and thanks for being curious.

My eclectic life in Kodiak, Alaska is a like a salad bar of experiences: Working aboard research ships, a photography instructor through the University of Alaska, weekly garden columnist, a chef on dinner cruises. I’ve dealt with sexual abuse and a rather dysfunctional childhood (does anyone have a perfect childhood?).

How do I love plants? Let me count the ways…

I’d get comments like:

“Marion, how about publishing a coffee table book of your photos?”

“If you ever publish a cookbook, I’d love a copy.”

“I want to take better pictures. Are you teaching photography classes?”

“I’ve been reading your garden column for years. Ever think of writing a book?”

It was all lovely to hear, but…

I knew there wasn’t enough of me to go around. So, I created this blog AND in 2014, I created my first custom wall calendar.

It’s an annual ritual, a blessing of sorts.

Each year represents a snapshot of goodness I’ve come across at one point or ‘nother: A new recipe, a better way to garden, a quote that stopped me in my tracks, a new way to photograph the world around me…

Living on Kodiak Island

Yes, I work, relax, and love life on Kodiak Island, the second largest island in the U.S. My husband, Marty, and I host wildlife viewing tours aboard our 42-foot yacht, the Sea Breeze. And we also operate an oceanfront B&B we appropriately named the Cliff House B&B.

I’ve worked on research ships, created photographs that hang in The Smithsonian and given up cheese and meat. I enjoy watching bumblebees and snowflakes. And somewhere along the line, I co-authored Chicken Soup for the Gardener’s Soul which spent three happy months on the New York Times bestseller list.

Learning how to rest

These days, I’m learning how to rest and to not do too much; and what it means to be authentic, to embrace joy, and to not burn the oatmeal.

I write and photograph about challenges I’m facing and overcoming, what works for me; and knowledge I take for granted. You know, the little stuff that can make a big difference.

Meanwhile, the coffee and tea pot at our house is always at the ready.

Thanks for being on the planet. Cheers, blessings and love,

2 thoughts on “About Me”

Full of enjoyment, your eclectic! blog Marion.
And yes, no one has a perfect childhood.
So my one thought is that I am curious about how you do, or have “dealt with” some of those issues
to arrive at your present contentment of loving life on Kodiak Island?
BB

Hi Barbara, thank you for the comment and question… I think living on an island, in a small community like Kodiak has helped me quite a bit on my journey to learn who Marion is. Some people call it “the island way.” Sort of a we’re-all-on-this-little-ship-together. There’s comfort in familiar faces and places; at the post office, in the grocery store, on the rivers watching a brown bear catch fish. You’re not allowed to be lonely or sad for very long here. Friends will find and rescue you, like a stranded starfish. Most importantly, I’ve learned it’s okay to stop what I’m doing and go for a walk in the spruce forest. And to ask for help. As for contentment, I’m learning that it’s not what happens to us but how we react to it; not how much of the right stuff we have, but how attached we are to it. I read recently read a passage in the Bhagavad Gita that pretty much sums it up: “That man of action is free from karma who receives with contentment whatever befalls him, who is poised above the dualities, who is devoid of jealousy or envy or enmity, and who looks equally on gain and loss.”

MARION’S “GOODNESS FROM KODIAK” NEWSLETTER

LEARN ABOUT MARION…

I’m Marion Owen. I work, relax, and love life in Kodiak, Alaska. I’ve worked on research ships, created photographs that hang in The Smithsonian, given up cheese and meat, and enjoy watching bumblebees and snowflakes. And somewhere along the line, I co-authored the New York Times bestseller, Chicken Soup for the Gardener’s Soul. I’m learning how to not do too much. To be authentic, embrace joy, and not burn the oatmeal.

CHECK OUT MARION’S ANNUAL CALENDAR

TESTIMONIALS

I love the way you write about your garden, gardening, and general goodness, Marion. Nourishing, on so many levels. Thank you for brightening my day. — Leslie

What a lovely piece, it brought a smile to my face and warmed my heart. – Lorena

Marion, you absolutely amaze me capturing these beautiful snowflakes. Until you did this last year I had no idea that they looked like this! Thank you so very much for what you do! — Linda

Marion, thank you for sharing your recipe for Chocolate Chews! I enjoy all your posts about Kodiak, including your beautiful photos. I will look forward to more plant-based recipes you might discover! — Candy

Thank you for sharing your story and beautiful photos Marion. So inspiring in the activities you mentioned as well as the importance of the “big quiet” — being at peace in nature. –Diana

Thank you for your posts over the years, and especially this positive entry. I needed to hear your kind and thoughtful words. — Rich

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WHAT IS LAGNIAPPE?

Lagniappe (pronounced LAN-yap) is defined as an unexpected gift given to a customer as a bonus, a compliment, or simply for good measure. Mark Twain wrote about lagniappe in Life on the Mississippi (1883). Lagnaippe is "a word worth traveling to New Orleans to get; a nice limber, expressive, handy word--'lagniappe'..." English speakers learned the word from French-speaking Louisianians, but they in turn had adapted it from the American Spanish word la ñapa.

Twain went on to describe how New Orleanians completed shop transactions by saying "Give me something for lagniappe," to which the shopkeeper would respond with "a bit of liquorice-root, ... a cigar or a spool of thread." It took a while for "lagniappe" to catch on throughout the country, but by the mid-20th century, New Yorkers and New Orleanians alike were familiar with this "excellent word."

So, there you have it!

ABOUT MARION OWEN

I’m Marion Owen. I work, relax, and love life in Kodiak, Alaska. I’ve worked on research ships, created photographs that hang in The Smithsonian, given up cheese and meat, and enjoy watching bumblebees and snowflakes. And somewhere along the line, I co-authored the New York Times bestseller, Chicken Soup for the Gardener’s Soul. I’m learning how to not do too much. To be authentic, embrace joy, and not burn the oatmeal.